The Center for Study of Religion and Religious Tolerance and the Faculty of Political Science University of Belgrade jointly organized an international scientific conference dedicated to the tenth consecutive year of publishing the Politics and Religion Journal (PRJ). The Conference was held on November 25th 2016 and around 30 researchers had a chance to present their work in 7 different panels. Prof. Miroljub Jevtic, editor-in-chief, together with Prof. Dejan Milenkovic, opened the conference.

Call for panels and papers
ECPR General Conference (Oslo, 6-9 September 2017)https://ecpr.eu/Events/EventDetails.aspx?EventID=96
Section on "Religion, Politics, and the Public Sphere: Contesting Liberalism?"
Convenors: Luca Ozzano, University of Turin (luca.ozzano@unito.it) and Anja Hennig, Europa-Universität Viadrina (ahennig@europa-uni.de)Deadline: 15 February 2017Panel and paper proposal must be submitted online through the ECPR website. Prospective panel convenors are also required to contact by email the two section convenors, possibly by the end of December 2016.

Section Abstract

Liberal principles such as autonomy, freedom and equality have always been challenging conservative thought. In particular they are disputed or rejected by traditionalists and fundamentalists within all major religions. At the same time and often within the same state or society, progressive religious traditions tend to embrace liberal principles such as freedom of choice in moral issues and sometimes even consider religion a merely private matter. However, especially with regard to the accommodation of Islam, also local or state governments sometimes touch the boundaries of liberalism.

Such dynamics have become particularly evident since the late 20th century with what some call the ‘revenge of god’ or ‘deprivatization of religion’, making religion again a relevant factor in the public sphere of most contemporary societies, liberal democracies included. Whereas in the 1990s academic debates focused mostly on the role of Catholicism in the most recent waves of democratization, after 9/11 and the subsequent events attention has mostly shifted to investigate the compatibility between Islam and democracy. Moreover, the presence of religious actors in the public sphere, and the rise of public debates on issues such as bioethics, LGBT issues, and the role of religious symbols in the public sphere, have also given rise to a growing corpus of studies on the so-called morality politics. On the other hand, in the international field, we have witnessed the relevance of religion in conflict, violence and terrorism, but also in dialogue and in new patterns of civil society-based cooperation, as well as in international relations and international judicial bodies such as the ECHR.

Such processes have also significantly changed the way both common people and social scientists look at the world, sparking lively debates on what liberalism, modernization and secularization mean, and how religion can be accommodated in the context of contemporary democracies. Particular emphasis has been put on the role religious actors play in the public sphere. Studies have focused on the role of religious movements, both at the national and the transnational level, on religiously oriented political parties, and on the role of religious institutions, such as the Catholic Church, in political affairs. In the domestic field, scholarly attention has focused particularly on the role of religious values and religious actors in democratization processes, in theoretical terms and in relation to specific religious traditions.

There is, however, still need to investigate more systematically the motives, strategies and consequences of religious agency in the public spheres. Against this background, this Section investigates the various tensions between religious actors (but also religious ideas, values or ideologies), political discourse or action and liberalism(s).

The Section will address the following issues:

1. Morality policy, gender relations and religion
This subsection invites studies which analyze the religious factor in political conflicts about “fundamental questions” concerning life, death, and family patterns. The focus will be on gender-related issues such as abortion, marriage equality and LGBTQI rights, as well as on other bioethics issues and euthanasia.

2. Governmental religious policies and religious pluralism
This subsection focuses on how states, local or federal governments, religious parties or transnational organizations behave vis-à-vis religion or govern religious pluralism, and Islam in particular. This includes conceptual studies on secularism or multiculturalism such as the analysis of policies dealing with religious symbols in the public spheres, religious education, welfare or exception rules on religious grounds. This subsection will also try to define what citizenship can mean in a religious pluralist context.

3. Religion as source for (international) conflicts or factor for democratization
This subsection addresses scholars who analyze the various roles of religious actors in local, regional or transnational (merely interreligious or interethnic) conflicts. This includes on the one hand actors clearly contesting liberalism such as fundamentalist religious movements or terrorist groups. On the other hand, studies are addressed, which scrutinize religious civil societal initiatives involved in conflict solution and democratization processes, such as constitution writing.

4. (Post)secularization, religion and liberal democracy in political theory and empirical analysis
This subsection reflects upon the normative discourses on (post)secularization, and, thus, about the role religion should play in the public spheres of secularizing and/or de-secularizing democracies. This includes also approaches dealing with illiberalism and norm diffusion.

5. Religious Actors in Comparative Perspective
This subsection deals more systematically with the role of religious actors in contemporary polities: particularly, the focus will be on both political parties with a religious orientation, and national and transnational religious institutions, organizations and movements. Panels included in it will both analyze them in comparative perspective, and investigate their role in policy making, public debates, economic processes, and welfare.

Panels and Papers may address these issues merely empirically, theoretically or combine both perspectives. Also comparative, sociological and historical approaches are welcome. Given that liberal ideas are spread and contested worldwide there is by no means a restriction to the “global West” or to traditional liberal democracies.

It was long assumed that one of the main outcomes of a secular political order in plural societies was to encourage both emancipation and political equality for religious minorities. These assumptions are now strongly challenged by recent events in two neighbouring regions. First, in recent years, coinciding with but not necessarily caused by the post-2010 'Arab Spring', violence against Christians and other religious minorities has grown in many countries of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Some scholars have sought to explain this as either a continuation or re-emergence of deep-rooted primordial conflicts or to Islam's supposed 'inherent intolerance'. In the MENA, political secularism was imposed from outside by Western colonial rule. Over the last few decades of independence mainly unelected rulers have sought to impose and perpetuate their rule via processes of political secularisation whose ultimate aim was to divide and rule the various religious groups in their polities. Second, recent and current events in Europe point to growing polarisation in many countries between the non-Muslim majority and Muslim minorities; and, often, growing intolerance and declining ability to live together seems to be the outcome in several European countries. In Europe, the overall result is that while religious equality, including between Muslims and non-Muslims, is a cornerstone of the region's democratic foundations and constitutional arrangements, equality between religious groups is rapidly being whittled away. The purpose of the workshop is to compare and contrast the impact of political secular regimes in the countries of both the MENA and Europe. The aim is to understand the impact of political secularism in both regions, as a key component of inter-religious and cultural discord and contention.

CALL FOR PAPERS
Anarchism and Religion: Broadening the Focus
Anarchist Studies Network 4th International Conference
Loughborough University
14-16 September 2016

The intersection of anarchism and religion has provided a fertile field of intellectual inquiry. Some publications have focused on traditional anarchist quarrels with religion and its institutions; others have elaborated and discussed anarchist exegesis of religious scripture; others yet have articulated theological reflections with an anarchist angle; and others still have studied the histories of specific religious anarchist thinkers, communities and movements. However, the literature has tended to display familiar biases: authors are often white and Western, the main religion is often Christianity, and few have turned their attention to feminist themes.

In line with the central theme of the broader conference, papers for the stream of panels on anarchism and religion are particularly encouraged to focus on anarcha-feminist and queer concerns (of which many are listed in the broader call for papers copied below). Proposals developing non-Christian perspectives are also encouraged. Nonetheless, contributions on any topics relevant to the study of anarchism and religion are welcome, with or without connection to anarcha-feminism. Any disciplinary angle is welcome.

Please send abstracts of up to 250 words with your name and (if relevant) any institutional affiliation to stream convenor Alex Christoyannopoulos at a.christoyannopoulos@lboro.ac.uk by 7 March 2016.

The theme of the 2016 SSSR conference centers on the diverse public roles of religion, where pluralism and globalization are recasting religion’s public face. Public life is something that is shared with others; it moves beyond the private realm. Religious worship, when done corporately, is a public activity, and public life extends to civic as well as political involvement. Religious actors and institutions can shape various aspects and spheres of public life, and they, in turn, can be shaped by their public involvement.

Religion continues to be a force in public life—locally as well as internationally, across regions as well as cultures. To address the diverse public roles that religion can play in the contemporary world, we invite new assessments of religion in public life framed in comparative analyses—whether across religious and social groups, cultural settings, or nation-states. We particularly encourage proposals that place public religion in broader comparative perspectives, leveraging cross-national variation to develop concepts and test theories. But, of course, proposals for panels and papers on any topic in the scientific study of religion are welcome.

•the involvement of different religious groups, organizations, or institutions in the 2016 American presidential election

•the role of religion in shaping civic life across different religious or cultural groups, geographic regions, or nation-states

•the strength or weakness of religious political parties in North America, Europe, the Mideast, Asia, Latin America, and Africa;

•the impact of religious social movements on a range of issues, such as education policy, social service provision and human rights protection;

•the place of religion in constitutions and law, particularly putting prominent cases like the United States into comparative perspective;

•the impact of transnational forces on the public role of religion within particular states;

•the relationship between of economic development and public manifestations of religion; and

•the political or social meaning of secularism across regions, and the political impact of “secular” actors on the place of religion in public life.

All session and paper proposals must be submitted via the on-line submission system of the SSSR’s web site, http://www.sssrweb.org, which opens February 2, 2016. A session proposal requires: 1) session proposer’s full contact information; 2) a session title; and 3) an abstract of not more than 150 words describing the goal of the session and how the session will contribute to the scientific knowledge of religion. Individual paper proposals require the name(s) of the author(s), first author’s full contact information, an abstract of not more than 150 words that succinctly describes the question(s) motivating the research, the data and methods used, and what the paper expects to contribute to the knowledge or understanding of religion.

Call for papers for the ECPR general conference 2016 in Prague for the section: Religious and Political Affiliation in Comparative European Perspective", for a prospective panel entitled “European Secularization: Views from Turkey and Israel".

Turkey and Israel can be described as diametrically opposed, a secular state “imposed” on a religious population (Turkey) and a religious state imposed on a secular population (Israel). But, in fact both countries engage with questions regarding the role of religion in public and private lives and are in search for accommodation. In this proposed panel the questions of secularism and post-secularism will be discussed from a perspective of two countries on the fringes of Europe, where religion performs an important yet contested role.

If interested, send a short title to GUy Ben-Porat (Ben Gurion University of the Negev) at gbp@som.bgu.ac.il

Call for participants for the section on
Islam in International Affairs: Politics and Paradigms
EISA 10th Pan-European Conference, Izmir (Turkey), 7-10 September 2013

Organized by the European International Studies Association (EISA)

Chaired by www.Co-IRIS.org (International Relations and Islamic Studies Research Cohort)

The section presents Islamic contributions to international affairs and to the field of International Relations. It seeks to explore theoretical approaches and empirical experiences of the Islamic civilization by referring to both classical and modern sources, the worldview of prominent thinkers, statecraft experiences, current transnational movements, and case studies on the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) phenomenon.

The section offers analyses of both theoretical approaches of Islam in International Relations and concrete historical experiences. The main themes are patterned in three levels of abstraction: the individual, state (or society), and the international system. Most, if not all, of the researches carried out by students of IR have fallen into two extremities: they have either (1) tried to “Islamize” the Western tradition of IR or (2) overlooked Islamic contributions to the field and the rich tradition of the Islamic civilization regarding international affairs and statecraft. Going beyond these misleading extremities, we aim to promote a bridge between IR and Islam by looking into various variables such as theories, empiricism, and categorical levels of generalization in international relations.

The objective is to develop and sustain a body of knowledge that addresses the theories and practices of the Islamic civilization and of Muslim societies with regards to international affairs and to the discipline of International Relations. The larger aim of this section is to set a model for the inclusion of Muslim contributions to the field of IR in order to enrich, diversify, and strengthen it.

This section takes into account a whole picture of current Islamic contributions to IR fashioned under the themes highlighted below.

Instructions on how to submit proposals are available at http://www.paneuropeanconference.org/2016/spage.php?s=52

Please note that there will be a participation limit of three contributions per participant — whether as paper giver, roundtable speaker, or discussant/chair (any of these roles counts as one contribution).

The closing date for paper, panel, and roundtable proposals is midnight (CET) on Friday, 8 January 2016.

As Europe's biggest gathering of political scientists, the ECPR General Conference is the platform for lively discussion, exchange of ideas and the best thinking in the discipline. The conference covers the full range of political science, and attracts scholars from throughout the world and at all stages of their career.

The tenth anniversary of the ECPR General Conference will be held at Charles University, Prague, in the Czech Republic; the oldest institution of higher learning in Central Europe.

The Academic Programme for the General Conference will consist of lectures, Roundtables and themed Sections and Panels on topical subjects. Each Panel will include 4 – 5 Papers. The Programme will be very broad with Sections covering all the main areas of political science, political theory and international relations. You can present and discuss your work or simply observe and become involved in other elements of the programme.

Submit your Section proposal

Participants from full ECPR member institutions are invited to organise a Section. Don't forget that your Co-Chair can come from a Full, Associate or non-member institution. All proposals to organise Sections must be submitted through the online formby midnight UK time on 16 November 2015. The Sections will be selected by the Academic Convenors in early December. Further information about the role of a Section Chair can be found in our handy Guidelines.

The Section proposal requires:

The Section Chair must come from a Full member institution.

A Co-Chair to come from a Full member, an Associate or non-member institution. The proposed Section Chair and Co-Chair must have a MyECPR account.

Co-Chair's email address, which must be the same as the one used to access their MyECPR account.

A Section title.

An Abstract of no more than 1000 words, in English, which summarises the key aims and objectives of the Section and includes ideas for the Panels and Papers.

A selection of 3-8 key words.

An indication of the number of Panels you would like in your Section (generally between 3-8)

Proposers will be notified of the outcome of their Section proposal in early December 2015. The Call for Panels and Papers will be announced in early December 2015, as soon as the Sections have been confirmed.

We are pleased to confirm that the conference fees for the 2016 General Conference will remain the same as for 2015. The fees are as follows:

The next Graduate Student Conference will take place at the University of Tartu in Estonia from 10-13 July 2016. The Call for Sections is open until 30 September, and the board of the standing group on 'religion and politics' invites young scholars to propose a section related to our field of expertise.

Call for papers

Transnational religious actors, and civil society faith-based movements are a well-established reality of the contemporary world, which is however still understudied especially at the comparative level. Only recently, with the rise of transnational radical Islam, have religious actors started to be regarded as influencing the international and global systems, sparking a significant scholarly production. As a consequence, much of the recent literature in this sub-field has focused on pro-conflict radical and terrorist networks. However, in today’s Europe there are notable cases of transnational faith-based movements which are engaged in education and dialogue, as well as in the economic field, with proposals for interesting new entrepreneurial models merging free-trade principles and social/moral concerns. This conference aims at contributing to a better comprehension of this phenomenon.

Its first day will focus on a relevant example of dialogue-oriented group: the Hizmet movement, inspired by the Turkish preacher Fethullah Gülen, which is portrayed by many as an example of modern, ‘enlightened’ Islam, oriented towards dialogue and co-operation rather than conflict. In recent years the movement has been the focus of extensive international scholarship – both appreciative and critical – dealing with its founder and his teachings, its schools in Turkey and abroad, its relations with Turkish politics and society and the role of women therein. Although many interesting works exist about its development in countries other than Turkey, so far few coherent efforts have been made to understand its development at the transnational level. This is true particularly in relation to comparative works which can highlight the common points and the differences between the movement and other religious groups, either within Islam or belonging to other religious traditions. This conference aims at filling that gap by including papers addressing the Hizmet movement in its transnational perspective: either by analysing its activities, development and institutionalisation in different countries, or by comparing it to other dialogue-oriented religious movements. Different disciplinary perspectives, from political science to sociology, anthropology and law, as well as different methodological perspectives, are welcomed.

The second day of the conference will address more broadly the field of contemporary religious movements by focusing on the economic and entrepreneurial activities carried out by faith-based groups and the economic models which inspired them. The above-mentioned Hizmet movement is an example of a religious movement successfully engaged in several entrepreneurial activities, particularly in the education and media fields. However, religion-related entrepreneurship is widespread also in the Christian world, as shown for example by the Focolare movement, which inspired the ‘communion’ or ‘civil’ economy, marked by a strong solidaristic orientation within the free-market economy. Moreover, some ‘new’ religious movements which are not part of ‘traditional’ religions also propose interesting entrepreneurial activities in a neo-communitarian perspective strongly marked by spiritual values. This section of the conference welcomes contributions about the relationship between religious movements and economy, both through single-case studies and broader comparative and theoretical works.

The conference is funded by the University of Turin and the Compagnia di SanPaolo Foundation, and co-sponsored by the ‘Religion and Politics’ standing group of the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR), the IPSA RC43 ‘Religion and Politics’ Research Group and the Istituto Tevere based in Rome. It will take place on 10-11 December 2015 and will be hosted by the Department of Cultures, Politics and Society of the University of Turin (Italy) at the Luigi Einaudi Campus (CLE).

Prospective paper givers can send a proposal of up to 250 words, as well as any enquiry, to the scientific coordinator of the conference, Dr. Luca Ozzano, at the address: luca.ozzano@unito.it, and to the organization assistant, Dr. Chiara Maritato, at the address: chiara.maritato@unito.it.

The deadline for the submission of open panels is July 8th, while closed panels, already complete with paper proposals, can be submitted until October 7th.
The call for papers (for open panels only) will open on August 7th and close on October 7th.

The John Cabot University, based in Rome, has opened the following positions in the field of political science:

Assistant Professor of Political Science and International Affairs
John Cabot University, a four year, fully-accredited American liberal arts college in Rome, Italy, invites applications for a full-time faculty position in political science and international affairs at the assistant professor rank. We seek candidates with a Ph.D. in Political Science, demonstrated excellence in teaching and research, and commitment to academic service.
The ideal candidate will be expected to teach introductory and advanced undergraduate courses in international relations and global public policy with a load of three courses per semester. Ability to teach classes in American politics and foreign policy is an asset.
The candidate should be a graduate of an American university or have extensive experience in the American liberal arts educational tradition. The initial appointment is for two years with the possibility of tenure. Candidates are expected to be fluent in English, which is the language of instruction. Applicants should send a letter of interest, curriculum vitae, transcript, three letters of recommendation, one or two research papers or journal publications, and evidence of teaching excellence to: politicalSciSearch@johncabot.edu. The deadline for applications is October 31, 2015. Only short-listed applicants will be notified.

Visiting Assistant/Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs
John Cabot University, a four year, fully-accredited American liberal arts college in Rome, Italy, invites applications for a visiting faculty position in political science and international affairs at the assistant or associate professor rank. We seek candidates with a Ph.D. in Political Science, demonstrated excellence in teaching and research, and commitment to academic service. The candidate will be expected to teach introductory and advanced undergraduate courses in political science and international relations. The ideal candidate should be a graduate of an American university or have experience in the American liberal arts educational tradition. The search is open to all subfields.
The appointment is for one year, from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016. Candidates are expected to be fluent in English, which is the language of instruction and have permission to work in the EU. Applicants should send a letter of interest, curriculum vitae, transcripts, three letters of recommendation, one or two research papers or journal publications, and evidence of teaching excellence to: plsearchvisiting@johncabot.edu. The position will remain open until filled. Only short-listed applicants will be notified.

Call for Papers

Religion plays an important role in contemporary societies and in different geographical contexts. Debates on bioethics, gender relations, sexual and reproductive rights, among others, show the centrality of the religious position, which is in dialogue with, or opposed to, human rights and intimate citizenship issues.

At the crossroad of these perspectives, in recent years many controversial topics came to the fore: control over women’s body, regulation of sex-workers, debates on reproduction and scientific and medical procedures, recognition of same-sex marriages and homoparenthood. These issues, among others, sparked huge controversies in both the private and the public sphere. This special issue aims to focus on the intersections between religious and political debates concerning family models and their regulation, sexuality, reproduction, and gender relations. This call for papers aims to bring together relevant, original, and interdisciplinary contribution to the topic.

Texts must follow the guidelines for publication available online and sent by email to rccs@ces.uc.pt, with explicit indication of “Religion, Gender, and Sexual Citizenship” in the subject of the message. Although the journal favours publication in Portuguese, it accepts manuscripts in other languages (English, French, Spanish, and Italian).

All submissions will be subjected to evaluation through a peer-review process as described in the guidelines for publication.

Is secularism bad for women? Women and Religion in Multicultural Europe

How can societies secure religious women’s freedom and flourishing? What political arrangements offer the most to those who are religious and female? Given the increased visibility of religion in the globalized world of the 21st century, these questions demand urgent answers.

Frequently, the rights of women and religious people are pitted against each other. Laws, policies and practices are advocated that will help either those of faith, or women, but not both. Gender equality or religious freedom is prioritised, but the other group is marginalised. Religious groups argue for their right to express and practice their beliefs, to educate their children in a faith-based school or to use religious decision-making bodies – for instance rabbinic courts or sharia arbitration councils – to settle family conflicts. Some take this further and argue that the state should align itself with a particular faith, making its laws reflect religious traditions and texts. Women’s rights activists argue for religious freedoms not to be granted at women’s expense – for instance challenging enforced gender segregation in public education and unequal marriage laws – and press for gender equality in employment, personal relationships, healthcare, culture and politics.

Yet there is major disagreement about the role of religion in the fight for gender equality. Is religion – at least some forms of it – an impossible impediment, something that must be destroyed in order for women to be free? Or can religion be a positive force in women’s lives, something that enhances their wellbeing and aids social justice?

Some writers argue that a form of political secularism is the best way to ensure gender equality. Allowing religious organisations political power enshrines gender inequality by giving state support to religious cultural practices that harm women (e.g. FGM, polygamy, forced marriage or forbidding abortion), they say, and leads to the state funding religious fundamentalists who pose as moderates. Reflecting political theorist Susan Moller Okin’s controversial 1997 essay ‘Is multiculturalism bad for women?’ they criticise multiculturalism (a political approach adopted from the 1970s to celebrate ethnic and religious diversity) as entrenching gender injustice. But other scholars consider secularism a bad political arrangement for religious people, because it excludes them from the political and public sphere (denying funds to faith-based welfare or education services, prohibiting the wearing of religious symbols in public spaces, or forbidding ‘religious arguments’ in political debates). Taking forward discussions initiated by Okin and continued recently in works of scholars including Saba Mahmood, Joan Scott, Nilüfer Göle, Nadje Al-Ali, Linell Cady and Tracy Fessenden, we will look at this in European and global contexts.

These workshops, funded by the International Society for the Sociology of Religion and led by Coventry, Uppsala, Helsinki universities and the Center of Social Studies (Coimbra), invite participants to join us in turning Okin’s ‘Is multiculturalism bad for women?’ question on its head, debating the benefits and drawbacks of secularism. Looking at the question this way around will, we hope, enable us to discover whether secularism is the best political system to ensure gender equality and religious freedom, and if so, which form of secularism? Or if secularism is not the best solution, how should governments work with and through religious people, without compromising women’s rights?

We will debate these questions in three workshops

Workshop 1 (Uppsala University, Sweden)

Women’s religious agency: negotiating secularism and multiculturalism in everyday life

This workshop explores how on the individual or everyday level, women today are negotiating religion, secularism, multiculturalism and non-religion.

This workshop investigates what women’s and religious organisations and groups are doing to address faith, secularism and multiculturalism.

Workshop 3 (Center of Social Studies, Lisbon, Portugal)

Political and public approaches to gender, secularism and multiculturalism

This workshop will analyse political debates on religion and women’s in the public sphere. It will explore how political and public institutions, including the media, education, law and employment, are formulating and negotiating women’s and religious rights.

These workshops will bring together academics, activists and policymakers involved in legislating about religion and gender, so that together we can contribute to policy and activism by women and religious communities. We are planning to publish some of the papers in a book.

The workshops are subsidised by the ISSR, Coventry University, Uppsala University and Center of Social Studies, Coimbra and there will be a small fee to pay to attend and participate.